From the small window of Kaal's house, the soft clinking of utensils and the low simmer of a pot on the stove filled the quiet evening air. His mother moved gently around the kitchen, humming an old lullaby that had once put kaal to sleep as a child.
She reached for the vegetables, her hands moving almost out of habit – fast, practiced, precise.
But suddenly—
"Ahh!' she gasped, the knife slipping.
A thin line of red bloomed across her finger. She stared at it for a moment, confused more than pained. The cut was shallow, yet it pulsed with a strange kind of weight.
Then came the feeling – a quiet, creeping unease. She stilled, the blood curling around her fingertip, forgotten. Her breath caught in her chest. Her eyes drifted toward hills, where kaal had gone.
Why… why does my heart feel so heavy? she wondered, her chest tightening with a fear she couldn't name.
Something was wrong. She felt it—not in her body, but in her bones. Like a thread had snapped far away, and the ache of it was reaching her now.
"Kaal…" she whispered, her voice trembling. The knife slipped from her hand and clattered to the floor.
Meanwhile, deep inside the cave, Ira sat beside Kaal, her hands trembling as she cradled his head in her lap.
His skin had turned pale—far too pale. His breathing was faint, shallow, as if it might disappear at any moment. The bite mark on his arm was swollen, dark, and angry, veins blackened around it like spreading ink.
"Kaal… please," she whispered, brushing his hair away from his forehead.
"Don't leave me. Not like this... not now."
Her voice broke as tears streamed freely down her cheeks, falling onto the stone floor beside him.
"What were you thinking?!" she cried, guilt crushing her chest.
This happened because of me.
"You put yourself in danger—for me," she said through sobs. "I can't just stand by… I have to save him."
She squeezed her eyes shut.
Then, slowly, she opened them again—memory flooding her mind.
"I'm sorry, Dad," she whispered. "I know I broke my promise. But there no other way."
As she spoke, her eyes began to change. Their usual colour faded, replaced by soft, Glowing Green light.
Ira placed her hands over Kaal's wound.
"In the name of the God of Life," she murmured.
She began to heal Kaal.
A soft green light bloomed from Ira's hands as she poured every last drop of her mana into healing Kaal—her strength, her will, her very breath—just to keep him alive.
The blood staining his clothes began to fade—and even the dark splashes spread across the cave floor slowly vanished.
Minutes passed.
When the light finally faded, her eyes returned to normal, dull with exhaustion. Kaal's breathing steadied. The darkness in his veins receded. His body slowly returned to its natural warmth.
He was healed.
But still unconscious.
Ira looked down at his face—and for a brief moment, her heart skipped.
Why does he look so familiar…?
Like someone I've known for a very long time…
She shook the thought away before it could take root.
A few minutes later, Kaal opening his eyes slowly.
Before he could even speak, Ira threw herself into him, hugging him tightly, her body shaking as she cried.
"I thought you died!" she sobbed. "I thought I couldn't save you in time!"
The warmth of her arms felt strangely familiar to Kaal—comforting, real.
"You idiot," she muttered, pulling back just enough to look at him face to face. A soft blush rose onto her cheeks.
"I thought you were dead! Why would you do something like that?!"
Her eyes were red, still glistening with tears.
"What would've happened if you had died, huh?" she said. "What would I have done then?!"
Kaal blinked slowly, pain still flickering behind his eyes, but a faint smile touched his lips.
"If I hadn't done that..." he spoke low, but it carried weight, "then you would be the one lying here instead of me."
She stared at him for a long second—then burst out laughing through her tears.
"You're joking?" she said, half crying, half smiling.
"Even at a time like this…"
**He turned his head with exaggerated speed, like a dramatic movie hero suddenly realizing something obvious.
of course it's true, he thought. She laughed like getting bitten by a snake was just part of her daily skincare routine.
He smirked.
In the next breath, "You were crying like a baby with no milk," he teased, grinning.
Ira's face instantly turned red—pure embarrassment.
She jumped in, a little too fast, a little too loud, "H-Hey! How can you talk like that? I'm the one who saved you! You don't know who I am!"
He squinted his eyes, studying her face. "Yes, exactly. I want to know who you are."
Kaal rubbed the back of his head slowly, still feeling weak.
"Ira…" he said, voice low, unsure. "How am I still alive?"
She looked at him, startled for a second.
"I killed that snake," he continued softly. "I remember the pain… and then nothing. And when I woke up—you were here."
Silence hung between them, thick and heavy.
"Ira," Kaal asker again, his gaze steady now, "will you do this? How did you do it?"
Ira nodded her head.
"Yes. I healed you—using healing magic."
The words felt heavier than they sounded.
Suddenly, her father's words echoed in her mind.
Never tell
Never
Never...
Kaal blinked. Clearly trying to process what he'd just heard.
"Wow," he said honestly. "You evolved even in this age?"
Ira stayed silent.
Kaal tilted his head, a faint smile tugging at his lips, "Ira, will you tell me, or should I be stabbed with suspense until I die?"
She smiled, light and effortless.
"Obviously."
But behind that calm expression, her thought stirred.
Sorry, Kaal.
Not now.
One day… I will tell you everything.
Silence settled between them, thick but not uncomfortable.
Kaal voice was quiet this time, yet serious—almost careful.
"There's something I've been meaning to ask," he said. "Even since I saw you in this cave…"
He paused, as if weighing his words.
"Where are you from?"
His eyes didn't leave hers.
"You said this place isn't your home."
Ira said, "I'm coming from the other side of this cave…"
Kaal blinked. "This cave?"
Kaal was shocked. "But the cave's sealed—we've already searched every corner."
Ira interrupted, "Yes, we are. But if you run to the end and strike the wall, it'll teleport you. These three tunnels lead to different parts of the World of Living—mine is one of them."
To be continue...